The ACLU of Pennsylvania and its
legal team held a news conference announcing a federal lawsuit alleging the
state's 1996 Defense of Marriage Act violated the constitutional rights of gay
and lesbian couples because it prevents them from marrying.

Within minutes of that news conference
ending, Tom Wolf, one of several Democrats looking to challenge Republican Gov.
Tom Corbett in the November 2014 election said in a statement:

“I want to thank the ACLU and the courageous
families involved in today’s federal lawsuit for standing up for equality and
fairness in Pennsylvania. While the Supreme Court ruled against the Defense of
Marriage Act, Governor Corbett is unwilling to act in favor of equality. …”

That was follow up a few hours later by this
statement from presumptive front-runner Allyson Schwartz:

“I am proud to support the
Pennsylvanians who stood up today to overturn our state’s unjust and
discriminatory law against marriage equality. … The time has come for Pennsylvania
to ensure that all of our state’s citizens who are in loving, committed
relationships and wish to be married receive equal recognition under the law.”

Corbett's
campaign manager Mike Barley said the state's marriage law is a matter for the
Legislature to decide. But he said Corbett supports the law.

"We
are firm in our view that marriage is between a man and woman," Barley
said.

Several recent polls of registered voters have shown growing support for gay marriage in Pennsylvania.

The May 2013 Franklin & Marshall College Poll of Pennsylvania found 38 percent of 526 respondents "strongly favor" allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry in Pennsylvania. That is up 2 percentage points from February and up 21 percentage points from May 2006.

The same poll found 34 percent of respondents were "strongly opposed" to same-sex marriage, which is the same as February and down from 50 percent of respondents in May 2006.